Store counter



E. WORTHINGTON.

STORE comma,

TlON FILED FE 16 APPL 2 4 1 7 5 Patented Apr. 4, 1922.

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STORE COUNTER.

1,41 1,765. Patented Apr. 4, 1922,

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INVENTOR f-nberm/ve O BY mgiya ATTORNEYS.

WITNESS EVERETT XVOR'IHDVGTON, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

STORE CGUNTER.

Application filed February 16, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I Evnnnrr lVonrrrrns- 'roN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented. a certain new and useful Store Counter, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to store furniture and particularly to counters for display and stockholding and storage purposes.

It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide an improved store counte-r that may be readily erected of a series of substantially duplicate units or sections-so that a counter may be erected of any given length and readily altered with great convenience and at small expense.

A further object of the invention is to provide a sectional counter formed of units each being constructed of knock-down inembers. i

A further object of the invention is to provide a counter unit or section the several members or elements of which are construrted according tostandardized system so as to be readily interchangeable with other units and to match with units of complementary and adjacent sections. A further ob ject is to provide unit members or elements that can be compactly stored and shipped for economy in transportation and storage space and which, at the same time, can be readily erected to form a substantial, ornate and capacious counter unit or section. In this connection it is a further object to pro-. vide complementary and cooperative struc tural members adapted when assembled to interlock in a substantial manner so that the whole will be stable and secured without the requirement of extraneousremovable fastening devices.

It is a further object to provide a counter of such depth from front to back as to provide a capacious storage chamber and alsozto provide means in the chamber adjustable transversely'with respect to the front and back of the counter to form a backing or follower to facilitate storage and removal of goods from the counter chamber.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the fore oing, will be made manifest in the following description of the preferred form of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood Specification of Letters Yatent.

Patented Apr. 4, 1922.

Serial No. 445,895.

that it is not intended to limit the inven tion to the embodiment shown by the said drawings and description as variations may be adopted within the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to the drawings:

F 1g. 1 is a perspective of a complete erected unit.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a counter formed of a plurality of the units, one of which is broken away.

Fig. 3 is a perspective looking toward the rear of a unit and showing the top member tilted upwardly and also showing the back frame removed from its proper position.

Fig. 4c is a perspective showing the top member tilted upwardly on one end and illustrating a dismounted sidemeinber and dismounted back frame and back panel.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through the rear portion of one of the side members and showing apair of the back frames applied thereto.

F 6 is a horizontal sectional view of a portion of the front end of a side with a pilaster and indicating the attachment of the front members thereto.

The present invention consists generally of a counter construction formed of a plurality of sections or units that may be conveniently and quickly arranged end to end substantially without interconnection or interlocking and presenting an ornamental and continuous front so that a number of sections or units can be alined to form a counter of suitable length. Agaimthe invention consists of the provision of a section or unit formed of a plurality of coordinate structural members adapted to be quickly assembled, certain of which are interlocked to provide a substantial, firm and capacious display and storage counter section or unit. The invention also involves other details, but one form of the invention. being illustrated herein though it isobvious that the unit members may be constructed in any desired dimensions and proportions and of suitable design according to given requirements. i

in Figure 4L the various elements or morn the base 2 is a foot or facing strip 4 which projects upwardly slightly above the plane of the bottom 3. Adjustable against the upwardly extending portion of the facing strip 4 is an upright front panel 5 of somewhat less length than the length of the facing stri 4.

o aid in maintaining the front panel 5 in upright position the stiles or end portions of the front panel are adapted to interengage with and interlock sultable means here shown as in the form of side panels or members 66 adapted to be mounted in vertical and transverse position across the ends of the bottom 3 of the base. The front vertical portions of the side members 6--6 are each preferably provided with ornamental post devices or pilasters of somewhat greater width than the thickness of the respective side panel or member 6 as clearly shown in Fig. 6 at 7, and interposed between the pilaster and the side panel 6 is a post 7 .of'lesser width than the pilaster atitsforward side, and provided at its rearward side with ribs or shoulders 8-8, the front faces of which are beveled off away from the 'pilaster to form a narrowing groove into i which the edges of the front panels 5 extend. At their sideedges, the front panels 5 are thickened on their rear faces to form wedgelike edges, so that as the edges are entered into the grooves, the front panels are pressed forward tightly against the rear face of the pilaster.

To further interlock the side members 6-6 with the adjacent pilasters 7 these latter may be provided with key slot plates 9 forming keepers to take hooks 10 extending from the ends of the front panel 5.

. When the base 2 with the front panel 5 and the side members 6- -6 have been assembled, as. shown in Fig. 3, there maybe then applied to the top edges of these members a top structure. 11 of any suitable shape and which is here shown as of hollowstructure forming a chamber 12 open at'the rear for access to contents thereof. The top'structure may have a bed 13 from thelower portion of which extends downwardly a plurality of lugs or dowels 14 disposed to match with dowel holes 15 provided therefor in the to edges of contiguous elements such as the si e members 6-6. At the front portion'of the bed 13 there may be provided a longitudinally extending tenon 16 to bear upon or approach the top end surface of the llasters 7.; which surfaces are slightly beow the plane of the top edges of the side membersfip; 7

Before the top structure 11 is lowered into interlocking position upon the side members 6 there is applicable to the open rear portion of the counter, thus constructed, a suitable door frame 17 which, when inserted in its final position, will bear against the contiguous ends of transversely extending cleats or rails 18 and 19; the upper and lower transverse members of the frame 17 being provided with dowel pins 20 to enter dowel holes 21 in the adjacent structure. As shown in Fig. 5, each frame 17 may be rebated at 17 a to take the contiguous end edges of adjacent elements as the side members 6; the rear and outer corners of the frame being beveled away as at 17 so as to form a neat finish at the back of the counter. When the frames 17 are of considerable dimensions their openings may be subdivided as by suitable doors 23, which are preferably hinged to the frame. 7 i

The vertical stiles of the frame 17 are shown as provided with series of transversely extendin notches 24 which, when the frame is app ied to the unit, will be in opposition to notches 25' in-sidemembers 6; the sets of notches being designed to receive a vertically adjustable shelf 26, or a series of shelves of which only one is shown.

A shelf, as 26, may be disposed in the notches as above described or it may be disposed upon opposite transverse cleats 19, as shown in Fig. 3. When a counter unit as above described is of considerable depth between the front and the back it is desirable to prevent the stock of material that may he placed therein from becoming disarranged. Also, it is desirable to provide for the stackin or piling of certaln classes of material either with or without containers so that they may be readil accessible without having to reach far orwardlyunder the to structure 11 and to that end an adjustab e follower or transversely extending. artition is provided. 'Such a partition IS own as comprising an upright panel or board 30 the bottom edge of which may bear upon the shelf 26 over which it may be moved toward or from the back as desired. Suitable means may be em loyed to maintain the follower 30 in uprig t position at various locations between the front and back of the counter. Such means is here shown as comprising a set of runners or slides each having a channelshaped ortion 31, Fig. 3, engaging a portion of t e horizontal top rail 18, which is shown as slotted at 18', to receive one flange of the channel while the other flange asses beneath the bottom of the rail 18. isposed at right a les to the channel portion 31 each runner as a pair of parallel upright flanges 32 to embrace the end of the partition 30.

The ends of the shelf 26 are similarly mounted on runners 33 having flanges 34 the latter running on the cleats 19 and each of the runners 33 bein provided "with a pair of vertically dispose flanges to embrace the ends of the partition 30.

From the above it will be seen that the invention provides forthe compact storage 1,411,ve:s

and packing of the several elements comprising a unit, thus saving in transportation space and storage space and yet providing for the ready assembling and secure interlocking of the various elements to form a complete unit a series of which may be arranged end to end to form a counter of desirable length.

What is claimed is:

1. A unit section, for a store counter, having a rigid base including a bottom having a rebated top edge, side members adapted to be erected on the rebated ends of the base, a front member to interlock with the side members, a top member adapted to be set down on and to interlock with the side members and front, and a back closure to interlock with the assembled top and bottom members.

2. A unit section, for a store counter, having a rigid base, side members adapted to be erected on the ends of the base, a front member to interlock with the side members, a top member adapted to interlock with the side members, a back frame to interlock with the assembled top and base members, and back panels removably mounted on the frame.

3. A store counter having horizontal cleats on side walls, an upright follower adj ustable to selective position transversely across the cleats and runners slidable on the cleats and'holding said follower upright.

4. A store counter having a horizontal part, an upright follower adjustable to selective position transversely across the part, runners having guided, sliding relation With said part and holding the follower upright, and runners at the upper portion of the follower for sustaining it.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

EVERETT W ORTHINGTON. 

